Margaret of Valois - First Wife Of Henri IV Of France

Margaret of Valois was born on May 14, 1553 at the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye. She was the daughter of Henry II of France and Catherine de' Medici and belonged to the Valois Angoulême branch of the Capetian dynasty. Margaret spent the first years of her life together with her siblings and Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, in the Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye. She received a comprehensive classical education and was fluent in Latin, Greek, Italian and Spanish. As the daughter of one of the most influential and powerful ruling dynasties in Europe, Margaret was already a sought-after marriage candidate as a child. Negotiations for a marriage between Margaret and Sebastian I of Portugal failed. From 1750 onwards, King Charles IX and Margaret's mother sought a marriage between the Catholic Margaret and the Protestant Henry of Navarre. The aim of this union was to bring about reconciliation between the French Protestants and Catholics. The union was very unusual for the time as a marriage between members of different religious affiliations was completely unheard of in the ruling houses of Europe. Nonetheless, the marriage contract was signed in Paris on August 17, 1572 and the wedding ceremony took place the following day. Alongside Henry of Navarre, numerous Huguenots had come to Paris to attend the wedding. The murder of several Huguenot leaders was the trigger for Saint Bartholomew's night and numerous Huguenots were killed. Henry of Navarre was captured and forced to convert to the Catholic faith. Despite converting to Catholicism, Henry was imprisoned in the Louvre together with his new wife Margaret and her younger brother François-Hercule. In February 1576, Henry of Navarre managed to escape from Paris without his wife who had not been informed of her husband's escape plans. Nevertheless, she was suspected of having aided her husband. Henry's escape also meant the couple's two years separation. Upon Margaret's release, Henry of Navarre urged his wife to come to his court in Neraque. But both King Henry III and Catherine de' Medici feared that Margaret would be used as leverage with which the royal house could be blackmailed once she was in Navarre. Therefore, they did everything in their power to prevent Margaret from leaving for Neraque. However, after Margaret's return from traveling to Flanders, they could no longer prevent the couple from seeing each other again. So, in 1578, Margaret traveled to Neraque, but Henry of Navarre wasn't interested in his wife anymore. Although he treated her politely and courteously, he avoided spending much time with her. Under Margaret's influence, the court at Neraque quickly developed into a meeting place for respected literary figures and philosophers. But the relationship between Henry of Navarre and his wife deteriorated, main factor being Henry's new mistress, Françoise de Montmorency, who claimed all of Henry's attention for herself and pushed Margaret out of her husband's favor. The queen consoled herself from 1580 onwards through an affair with Jacques de Harlet, seigneur de Chamvalot. At the invitation of her mother and her brother Henry III, Margaret set out in January 1582 to visit the French court in Paris. The king's offer was based less on family courtesy than on political calculation, as he wanted to secure Margaret as an ally for his political and religious interests. However, rumors of Margaret's liaison with Jacques de Harlet became public, and when she fell ill in June 1583, many courtiers suspected that she was pregnant. Consequently, Henry III publicly accused his sister of having an extramarital affair and banished her from court. This incident was unprecedented and caused a sensation throughout Europe, especially at the royal courts, where Henry's behavior was met with complete incomprehension. However, a return to Nerac was out of the question for the time being, as Henry of Navarre refused to receive his wife back at court until Henry III had explained himself and compensated Henry of Navarre for the unjustified accusations. Margaret had to await the outcome of the negotiations, and only eight months after her departure from Nerac, Margaret was finally reunited with her husband, who was less than enthusiastic to see her. In 1585, when the religious wars resumed, Margaret, repudiated by her family and her husband, joined a group of intransigent Catholics who opposed both Henry of Navarre and Henry III of France. She took possession of Agen, a town that was part of her dowry and of which she was countess, and had the fortifications reinforced. She recruited an army and sent it to raid the surrounding towns, but the Agenese turned against her and Margaret was forced to flee in haste. She settled in the castle of Carla, which she owned, but a year later she once again had to flee and took refuge in the château of Ybois, a little further to the north. When the château was besieged, Margaret was captured and imprisoned at the château du Son. To occupy her time, she began to write her memoirs. Also, she read a lot and received visits from several literary figures and philosophers. In 1593, Margaret reconciled with her husband, who was now Henry IV of France, after the death of Henry III in 1589. In order to consolidate his power, Henry wanted to remarry and ensure a legitimate offspring. An annulment of the marriage between Margaret and Henry was therefore on the table. There were several arguments in favour of the annulment. Consanguinity, forced marriage and Margaret's infertility. Henry wanted to marry his mistress, Gabrielle d'Estrée, but Margaret was unwilling to give up her position as queen to a mere mistress. However, after Gabrielle's sudden death in 1599 and after being promised a substantial financial compensation, Margaret agreed, the annulment was realized and Henry IV married Marie de' Medici. After 90 years of marriage, Margaret finally returned to Paris. Her return to Paris had some tangible financial interests behind it. Margaret was fighting over her maternal inheritance after Catherine de' Medici had died in 1589. Margaret succeeded in enforcing her claim to part of her mother's inheritance in court, so that from then on, she was able to finance her livelihood through her mother's estate. In 1607, she moved into her own self-built hotel on the left bank of the Seine opposite the Louvre. There, she gave numerous large receptions with theatre and ballad performances and organized evening dinner parties with literary figures, scholars and philosophers. Margaret maintained the first Parisian salon and was active as a patron of young poets. As her relationship with her ex-husband had improved again, she also had a very friendly relationship with Maria de' Medici during this time, who had become Henry IV's second wife after Gabrielle d'Estrée's death. Thus, on March 13, 1610, Margaret was present in the Basilica of Saint-Denis when Maria was crowned queen. As early as 1606, Margaret had designated Maria's son Louis XIII as her sole heir in her and after Henry IV's assassination on May 14, 1610, she supported Maria de' Medici during the first years of the regency for the still minor Louis XIII. Margaret of Valois died in Paris on March 27, 1615, after a short illness. She was 61 years old. She was buried in the Basilica of Saint-Denis. Thank you for watching.